Title: The Announcement
Author:brittany34
Summary: One year ago Oliver Queen and Chloe Sullivan's romance ended, but when Oliver finds out that Chloe is about to marry someone else he realizes that he has to find a way to win her back before she ends up married to the wrong man
Characters: Chloe Sullivan, Oliver Queen, Lois Lane, Clark Kent, and several original characters
Rating: this chapter T
Genre: Angst/Romance
Words: 2,278
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Chapter 9
The sound of Oliver's elevator door slamming open startled him away from the paperwork in front of him. He looked up and saw Lois standing just inside the apartment her arms crossed over her chest, the famous Lois Lane glare directed right at him.
"Shit," he muttered under his breath. He knew that look. It was a look that said he was either about to get the telling off of a lifetime or even possibly punched in the jaw. "What can I do for you Lois?" He asked hesitantly.
"Well for starters you can tell me why the hell I just got a message from my cousin asking me to meet her at a dress shop in Smallville this weekend so we can pick out our dresses, for her wedding," on the last three words her voice raised several octaves.
Oliver stared at her for a moment his mouth hanging open. Chloe wanted to go dress shopping for the wedding. After everything that they had said to each other the night before why would she call Lois the very next day? It didn't make any sense, he had been sure after on Jacob Winston's visit earlier that day that he had made some kind of progress, Why else would the other man go to all the trouble of storming over to his apartment to try and chase him off. It didn't make any sense why she would…. Oliver let out a small humorless chuckle as everything fell into place.
"What?" Lois demanded.
"You dear baby cousin is just so… damn stubborn."
"That she is," Lois admitted, "but we both already knew that, what I'm trying to figure out is what you plan to do, because obviously you haven't done much of anything yet."
"I have Lois, I've been calling her and…"
"You've been calling her?" Lois stomped over to his desk, pressed her palms to it a leaned down her eyes locked on his, as he looked at her he saw some of the understanding she had for him just a few days ago had faded. Not that he could blame her, he knew how loyal Lois was to Chloe and no matter how close of friends they had remained over the years he knew how worried Lois was about her younger cousin, "the love of your life is about to marry someone else, someone not nearly good enough for her I might add, and your plan of attack is to call her a whole lot? What are you twelve?"
Oliver opened his mouth to argue but she didn't give him a chance, "It's time to storm the fields, Queen. Stop sitting back and hoping she'll just come to her senses. You've really got to step up your game here, take no prisoners." She slammed her fist to the desk to add to her point.
"Lois please stop with the military themed dress down, I know I have to step up my game, especially since you just informed me of her plans. I guess I just thought I had made some progress after last night."
"Last night?" Lois asked her eyebrows rose up and down suggestively. "Does that mean you actually saw her?" she asked hopefully.
"Yeah she came here to tell me off," he replied with a small chuckle.
"She told you off?"
"Oh yeah," he said a huge smile breaking out on his face at the memory of his feisty blonde storming into his apartment. His smile grew impossibly bigger at the thought of the kisses that followed.
"But that's not all is it?" she asked.
"Huh?" he asked feigning innocence.
"What else happened?" she asked her grin almost as big as his, "did you two…"
"Lois. First off no we didn't, and second even if we had, do you really think I'm gonna sit here and tell you about it?"
"So that's a no on any real action?" Lois asked her mood deflating, "I gotta say I'm disappointed Ollie… I expected more from you."
Oliver leaned back and pinched the bridge of his nose trying to push aside the small amount of annoyance, "Lois this is Chloe we're talking about, I'm not about to manipulate her into sleeping with me to get her away from her fiancée' that's not fair to her. She's not just some game to me."
Lois sighed heavily, "I know that, I just… I really hate that guy, and I love you, and I love my cousin and the two of you are just… meant for each other, you know?"
"Yeah I do," the smile returned to his face at Lois's words.
"So what did happen last night," she urged.
He leaned forward his elbows resting on the edge of the desk in front of him. He didn't know what information exactly he should volunteer to Lois but after a moment he decided to lay it all out. If for no other reason then Lois was closer to Chloe then anyone else at this point and apparently there was a pretty good chance he was going to need some kind of back up. "I kissed her."
"You did? Well this just got a whole lot more interesting," she moved across the room and moved a chair to the opposite side of his desk, she flopped down and leaned her elbows on his desk and mirrored his position. "So what did she do? If the goofy grin you're wearing is any indication I'm guessing she kissed you back, right?"
"At first, yeah."
"So then what happened?" Lois said with a gleam in her eye.
"I told her she shouldn't be marrying him, and then she accused me of only wanting her back because she was going to marry someone else."
"And what did you say?" Lois asked her excitement evident in her voice
Oliver reached toward the drawer beside him, "I showed her this," he pulled the ring box from the drawer and handed it to Lois.
She slowly flipped open the lid and her breath caught in her throat, "that's much better," she said smiling brightly.
"What do you mean?"
"Have you seen the monstrosity she's wearing on her finger now? It's just not Chloe." She looked back down at the ring, "but this… this ring is perfect for her."
Oliver nodded; he had spent weeks looking for the perfect ring, but finally given up his search in favor of having it specially made for her. "I told her that I've had it since before she left Star City," he took a deep breath preparing himself for revealing the next bit of information, "and then I asked her to marry Me." he added softly.
Lois choked on air, "you actually asked her to marry you?" she asked her eyes wide.
"Yeah."
Lois shook her head in disbelief, "you asked her to marry her while she's still engaged to someone else."
"Yes."
"Oliver the idea was to split them up, and your solution was to pop the question?"
"Um… yeah."
Lois stared at him wide eyed, "Ollie, are you familiar with the saying putting the cart before the horse?" Oliver opened his mouth to respond but she cut him off, "you have to break them up, and then propose."
"I know that. I just couldn't think straight… she really is the most infuriating woman."
Lois chuckled, "well she is my cousin, and I'm guessing since she called me to go dress shopping this weekend she said no."
"Obviously."
"Okay that's it Queen, I think it's time you acknowledge that you need some back up."
"I was already prepared to do so." he admitted with a small smile.
"Good." She stood up abruptly and made her way toward the elevator she pulled the door open and stepped inside, then took back to him, "be at the farm tomorrow night at seven fifteen."
"What? Why?"
"Well I'm having a small intimate dinner party, and since you and I are so close, I say you have to be there."
"What are you…?"
She held up her hand stopping him, "just trust me, I've got a plan." She said with a wink as she pulled the door closed.
Oliver listened as the elevator descended 'This can't be good' he thought before grabbing back up the ring box and placing it back in the drawer beside the Jade bracelet.
Chloe made her way into the small coffee house and scanned her eyes over the crowd of people looking for her cousin. When Lois had called her an hour ago and insisted they get together for coffee immediately, she wasn't quite sure why they were already meeting up to look for dresses this weekend.
It only took her a moment to realize that Lois hadn't arrived yet, she made her way through the people to the counter and after ordering her favorite, an almond mocha latte and a chocolate chip muffin, and she walked across the coffee shop and sat in a booth in the corner.
She picked up her cup and took a generous gulp; she was really hoping that the coffee would give her the pick up that she needed, after her visit with Oliver the night before. To say she had trouble falling asleep would be the understatement of the century she hadn't slept one little bit. Every time she closed her eyes and tried to drift off her mind was flooded with images of what had happened at the clock tower. The smile on his face as he watched her, the kiss that had ignited something in her that Jake had never managed to do, and most of all, the ring and the look on Oliver's face when he pleaded with her not to marry 'the wrong man' but to marry him instead.
She wished she could say that it didn't affect her. That seeing him in front of her like that didn't make her want to wrap her arms around him and forget everyone and everything else, but it had. She had to force herself to walk away from him and even now she still fought the urge to go back to him.
She felt her resolve weakening and she quickly forced herself to remember every bad moment with Oliver, it was a tactic she had started using ever since he'd returned. She saw all the missed dinners and all the nights she spent alone, and when that didn't work she would force herself to remember that night that she had returned to Star City to try and work things out only to discover him in bed with another woman.
That one usually did the trick and it didn't fail this time either just the memory of it had her shaking away any thoughts of going to him.
A moment later when Lois arrived she was grateful. She slid down in the seat across from her and smiled brightly, "hey cuz, have you been here long?"
"Not too long," she answered returning the smile. "So what was so important that I had to come meet you right away?"
"Well here's the thing… I've been thinking about how I've been acting toward Jake, and I think I've been unfair. Maybe I need to try to get to know him a little better… give him a chance."
"Really?" Chloe asked.
"Yes really."
"You'll have to forgive me Lois but given everything that has happened since you've met him, you have to understand why I'd be a bit skeptical."
"Okay I understand where you're coming from, but Chloe, all I want is for you to be happy. I'll do anything to make sure that happens for you."
"So what do you suggest?"
"Dinner, at the farm," Lois replied with a smile, "it'll give me a chance to get to know this man of yours again, maybe get a chance to form a new opinion of him. So what do you say?"
Chloe looked at her for a moment more trying to figure out if her cousin was serious, "Okay, when?"
"Tomorrow night. Seven sharp."
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